GCVCC Legislative Update 2020
GCVCC Opposes AB 2843
AB 2843 would add significant costs to businesses that are already struggling to maintain their
operations during this pandemic and create yet another barrier to employers who attempt to maintain staffing
or pay for their workforce.
Specifically, AB 2843 would require a city, county, or city and county to impose an annual tax of up to $150
per employee on all applicants for a local business license, unless they have 50 or fewer employees. The bill
requires that any tax revenue collected be deposited into a special fund, entitled the “Affordable Housing
Assistance Fund,” and used to provide rental assistance, subsidize affordable housing development projects,
provide vouchers for individuals experiencing homelessness, and help first-time homebuyer programs. Even
during the best of times levying a “head tax” on California businesses would not solve the state’s housing and
homeless crisis. During these extraordinary times, such a tax would be a punishing blow on employers
struggling to keep their doors open, and an insult to employers attempting to reopen and hire or rehire workers.